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The Truth About Restitution in Federal Criminal Cases with Ashley Adams, Esq.

Set For Sentencing

Release Date: 01/20/2025

Maxwell's Silver Hammer (PART II): Transfer to Minimum Camp & Sentencing Post Mortem show art Maxwell's Silver Hammer (PART II): Transfer to Minimum Camp & Sentencing Post Mortem

Set For Sentencing

In Part II of our deep dive into the Ghislaine Maxwell case, we begin with BOP Prison consultant, Walter Pavlo of prisonology.com to talk about her transfer to a minimum security camp.  Then, we resume with  Mark Allenbaugh of sentencingstats.com for one of our famous "sentencing post-mortems" to see what we can learn from Maxwell's sentencing proceeding.    IN THIS EPISODE: Maxwell's unprecedented transfer to a minimum camp; Cheers for the government for understanding the power of narrative lies in the specifics; Cheers to the defense for creating a theme (Epstein’s...

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Set For Sentencing

The saga of Jeffrey Epstein is ongoing and ever-present in the news.  And there are powerful lessons to be learned.  But the talking heads are mostly just spinning their wheels.  So, if you're seeking some straight talk and inside scoop about all of it, you've come to the right place.   This is a 2-part episode, as there is much ground to cover.  The title, of course, is an homage to the great Beatles song.  But in truth, Ms. Maxwell does indeed wield a hammer.  The Trump folks want to use it to do damage control and she's looking to dig a tunnel out of...

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Set For Sentencing

An independent judiciary is the cornerstone of a healthy democracy. But judges are under attack.  Therefore, we must stand the post and protect judges from intimidation, unlawful prosecution, incredulous calls to impeach, or worse. And, when it comes to federal criminal sentencing, judicial independence is also crucial to the fair administration of justice.   But judicial independence has been undermined for decades by adherence to the stringent, dehumanizing, US sentencing guidelines. Since 2005, these guidelines have been discretionary, yet many judges and lawyers continue to...

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Set For Sentencing

The Trump administration stated that Kilmar Abrego-Garcia would never return to US soil. But they just back-tracked and brought him back.  Unfortunately he now faces federal prosecution under a new indictment for conspiracy and alien smuggling.  The bigger problem is the govt. has gone to great lengths to wage an extra-judicial smear campaign against him, with a variety of other horrendous allegations. It remains to be seen whether this indictment represents a genuine pursuit of justice or is influenced by political motives. IN THIS EPISODE: The many red flags in the Indictment and...

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Due Process Denied (PART II):  Kilmar Abrego-Garcia and the Due Process Denied (PART II): Kilmar Abrego-Garcia and the "Great Replacement"

Set For Sentencing

In understanding the current administration's draconian deportation policies, nothing makes sense except in the light of white supremacy.  The underlying animating force of these policies, openly stated by Tom Homan during a white house press conference, is "the great replacement theory".  Propagated by white nationalist, white supremacist fascists, operating in and out of government, it's a lie that has resulted in depraved acts of racist and antisemitic violence (See Southern Poverty Law Center link below).    Sadly, the DHS, ICE, and other federal agencies have become...

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Set For Sentencing

America might have moved on from Kilmar Abrego-Garcia, but we have not. So, ask yourself:  What happens when the U.S. government indefinitely sentences someone to a foreign prison without any due process and no one stops them? In this episode (part 1 of 2), I appear on Justin Yentes's podcast "Truth Be Found" to discuss the implications of this case.  Justin is an amazing criminal investigator, whom I've worked with in the past, especially on capital matters.  We were also joined by former gang member, now consultant, Angel Garcia, to pull back the curtain and talk about about...

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Set For Sentencing

On Friday, April 25, George Santos learned his fate, at his fraud sentencing in federal court. He had two years since his indictment to walk the walk, demonstrate extreme remorse and acceptance, and take meaningful steps to address the problems that got him here and convince a judge he wouldn’t make the same mistakes again. But the government painted him as an unrepentant fraudster who was bound to reoffend, and the judge agreed, giving him a sentence at the very high-end of the guidelines. Therefore, Mark Allenbaugh and I went live on YouTube to conduct one of our world-famous “sentencing...

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Set For Sentencing

Although we often complain about the sentencing guidelines, this week, I find myself thankful that we still live in a country that has courts and due process, in the federal criminal courts.  At least for now.  So today, we celebrate the death of guideline departures, lament the death of due process in immigration, and worry for the future of this democracy. That's why we start off talking about the plight of Kilmar Garcia-Abrego, a person lawfully in this country who was abducted by brownshirt immigration thugs and stolen away in the night to a concentration camp in El...

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Set For Sentencing

I'm back. I've been in hibernation for the last couple of months, basically paralyzed by what can only be described as a rapid descent into authoritarian hell.  In his seminal work, "On Tyranny", Timothy Snyder warns:  "Listen for dangerous words. Be alert to the use of the words extremism and terrorism. Be alive to the fatal notions of emergency and exception. Be angry about the treacherous use of patriotic vocabulary."  So, today's podcast is brought to you by the letter "T" for "terrorism". The government is going to great lengths to brand anyone who dares question the...

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Set For Sentencing

I call this episode “Anchor’s Aweigh” for two reasons.  First, there is a potential seismic shift in federal sentencing coming, which would go far to eliminate what we call the dreaded “anchoring effect” of the draconian and deeply dysfunctional sentencing guidelines. If this passes, it will likely be the biggest change in guideline sentencing since Booker was decided twenty years ago. The other reason for the title is because the achor’s up on the new ship of state, and anyone paying attention should feel deeply unmoored.  The vessel is powering through...

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More Episodes

Restitution is often imposed to compensate crime victims for their losses. Done correctly, it can help victims recover and allow offenders to move on after serving their sentence.

However, defense attorneys sometimes overlook restitution issues, resulting in burdensome payment orders. These can extend prison time and hinder reintegration after release, making restitution effectively a lifelong punishment.

So, in Episode 106 of Set for Sentencing, we welcome back Ashley Adams, a former united states attorney and incredible white collar criminal defense attorney in Phoenix, AZ.  Together, we take a deep dive into the wonderful world of restitution.

 

IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Exemptions under state law don’t necessarily apply with the feds;
  • The “20 year rule” for restitution orders;
  • Negotiating restitution issues in the plea negotiations;
  • Whether and how a payment schedule can be modified;
  • What happens when you catch the “FLU”, or rather the “FLU” catches you (i.e. what does debt collection look like with the Financial Litigation Unit of the DOJ;
  • The ins and outs of the “Inmate Financial Responsibility Program”
  • Navigating probation or supervised release with a restitution order;
  • Vulnerability of a spouse’s assets in a “community property” state;
  • Charging orders in partnerships;
  • The government going after kids’ college funds;
  • Whether and how the government can go after foreign assets.

 

LINKS: 

https://www.azwhitecollarcrime.com/ashley-adams/

 

Ashley's first appearance on Set for Sentencing:  Episode 7:  Stories from the Frontlines of Justice -- From Prosecution to Defense:

https://youtu.be/z9NmDSInn6s?si=4A1DMpO4jNsTu861

 

My MUSIC!  Ashley and I had a little chat about music at the end, and so I couldn't resist the opportunity to plug my new album, ONE GOOD THING.  It's available on all streaming services, including Youtube.  I also just released the record on vinyl.  Hit me up if you want a copy.  Otherwise, here's the YouTube page for the record:

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_kyVV0Qs1xMGqXQYZlzHzBgUlA7A35aENI